SKETCH

(director/writer: Seth Worley; cinematographer: Megan Stacey; editor:Seth Worley; music: Cody Fry; cast: Tony Hale (Taylor Wyatt), D’Arcy Carden (Liz Wyatt), Bianca Belle (Amber Wyatt), Kue Lawrence (Jack Wyatt), Kalon Cox (Bowman Lynch); Runtime: 92; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Katelyn Botsch,Tony Hale, Steve Taylor, Daryl C. Lefever; UTA; 2024)

“Tells us how grief can bring out both the bright and dark sides when faced with the death of a loved one.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Seth Worley in his feature film debut is director-writer of this gimmicky fantasy family drama about dealing with grief and confronting monsters that magically come to life.

The Wyatt family widower Taylor (Tony Hale) is raising on his own his 10-year-old daughter Amber (Bianca Belle) and her slightly older brother Jack (Kue Lawrence) after his wife’s death. Taylor’s removed from the house all photos of his wife and wants to sell the house to start fresh. Amber now draws monsters in her sketchbook to relieve her grief. Jack worries about his sis feeling so despondent, and tries consoling her.

Jack comes upon a magical pond near their home that fixes broken things. When thinking about placing his mother’s ashes in it, instead by accident Amber’s sketch pad falls in and all her monster sketches come alive.

When the monsters start attacking the community, the family gets help from the residents to stop the invasion.

The message for the feel-good film tells us how grief can bring out both the bright and dark sides when faced with the death of a loved one, and through the enlightening power of art and with a little help from your friends the demons can be exorcised.

A lively cast keeps things cooking for a young audience. If you liked E.T. or the Goonies, you’ll probably also like this film.

It played at the Toronto Film Festival

REVIEWED ON 10/5/2024  GRADE: B-
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